Course Catalogue

Veterinary Public Health & Epidemiology VETSCI4024

  • Academic Session: 2026-27
  • School: School of Biodiversity One Health Vet Med
  • Credits: 20
  • Level: Level 4 (SCQF level 10)
  • Typically Offered: Semester 1
  • Available to Visiting Students: No
  • Collaborative Online International Learning: No
  • Curriculum For Life: No

Short Description

This course addresses the broad topics of population medicine, epidemiology and veterinary public health.

Timetable

Weekly lecture and practical sessions

Requirements of Entry

Students must have attained the minimum requirements for entry into level 4 of the Veterinary Biosciences [Hons]/MSci Programme as specified in the Veterinary Biosciences [Hons]/MSci Programme Supplementary Regulations.

Excluded Courses

None

Assessment

In course assessment: Solo oral presentation (15%) and applied assessment (20%) based on an aspect of food safety/risk management.

End of course assessment: Written examination composed of Qs which may include SAQ, data interpretation questions (DIQ) and MCQ (65%)

Main Assessment In: December

Course Aims

To provide students with knowledge and understanding of:

■ Epidemiological concepts, principles, methods and measures that can be applied to human and animal populations by means of which to enhance understanding of disease and to inform control

■ The positive and negative impacts of human-animal interaction through direct and indirect exposure and through consumption of foods of animal origin, with major emphasis on farm-to-fork food safety

■ The organization of human and animal health systems, at resolutions ranging from global to local, and the principles of the legislative and regulatory basis for disease control

■ The adoption of the principles of population preventive medicine to manage and control diseases of animals and humans

Intended Learning Outcomes of Course

By the end of this course students will be able to:

1. Explain the limitations of diagnostic methods when estimating disease frequency in a population.

2. Apply standard epidemiological study designs/disease investigations, considering strategies to avoid/minimise biases and errors.

3. Interpret standard epidemiological measures of frequency and association, including confidence intervals around these. 

4. Explain the structure of disease surveillance systems, for animal and human diseases.

5. Interpret the outputs of disease surveillance systems, for animal and human diseases.

6. Describe the main routes of transmission of zoonotic pathogens, including indirect routes and contact networks.

7. Apply the principles of food safety, both in general and with specific reference to food products of animal origin.

8. Describe the role of risk analysis in food safety systems and in the control of food safety hazards in food products of animal origin.

9. Describe the impact of emerging and zoonotic infectious agents on human/animal/environmental health.

10.  Explain the drivers and the impacts of antimicrobial resistance.

11. Describe the role of research, including epidemiological modelling, in informing disease control efforts and policies.

Minimum Requirement for Award of Credits

No exceptions